Icarus
by Whovifan
Summary: He dedicated himself to the Alliance and they lied to him. Now on the run, Jackson Kane and his crew are going to learn what makes a person out in the Black. (Mostly featuring OCs, expect some minor Firefly characters to turn up on the way).
1. Chapter 1

**Look, I know how annoying these bits are where a writer talks before a story. But I really want feedback on how to develop this story because right now I'm kinda just going with it. Sorry about that. Enjoy.**

 **Ginger's Palace**

"Why would I ever side with someone with the stench of the Alliance on them?" Ginger lent over the table, ashes falling from the smoking cigarette clenched between the yellowing teeth that gave him his name.

It was a good question. Jackson Kane knew it was a good question. Up until a year ago, the Alliance had spent of its time squashing Ginger and folk like him on the Outer Rim. People like him had a tendency for not following the rules. Jackson had brought down his fair share of Gingers because of this. Now he was asking – no, pleading – for the help of one.

"I think you know I don't follow the Alliance's rules anymore," said Jackson, conscious of the formidable lackey who had just quietly entered the room. "Ever since…"

"Miranda, yeah, we've all heard of it," Ginger grinned, a menacing grin. "I tell you what though, if I had a credit for every time some gorram Alliance soldier strutted in here and started bragging about switching sides after 'finding out' about Miranda, I'd wouldn't be living on this hellhole, I can tell you that. 'Course, most of them aren't telling the truth. You see, Alliance thinks that bringing down scummy folk like me will improve their reputation. They send in guys like you to do just that"

"Understandable," agreed Jackson, wiping back his greasy scarlet hair. "But I'm not exactly on speaking terms with the Alliance right now so you should really believe me when I say that I am not here to try and bring you down."

"That's good," nodded Ginger, a crazy twinkle in his eye. "Would 'ave been a shame if I had to get my suit dirty burying another one of your lot."

Jackson sighed. He didn't have time for any of this; the longer he stayed in one place, the more chance there was of the Alliance finding him. His sweaty palms wrestled with one another as Ginger continued his threatening monologue.

"So what do you want from me then? I presume you're not here for a gab. You want something from me – work, transport or some of those whores I recently acquired a group of."

"Equipment," Jackson interjected, struggling to hide his repulsion. "My ship needs repairing as soon as possible. It's a Firefly, but it's missing half its engine."

"Ah, Firefly parts," said Ginger. "Shame, one of my old business associates has one of them but he's, well, on a bit of a prolonged holiday, let's put it that way. He has a top notch mechanic who could 'ave helped you out."

Jackson supressed his annoyance – he needed to get off the planet as soon as possible but this good-for-nothing kingpin was playing with him, teasing him. In his peripheral, Jackson could see that one of Ginger's lackeys was getting awfully itchy for his gun. Men on the Outer Rim only spoke one language and Jackson was not in a rush to learn it.

"You have a reputation as a man who can get things. I need to get out of here as soon as possible so let's cut to the important things. Is there any chance you can help me?" snapped Jackson, probably a bit too abruptly.

It was clear that Ginger did not take to Jackson's shift in tone. "Well, I have a few associates that can pull together some parts before the end of the week. I hope your snobby little nose can deal with the stench of us Outer Rim folk for a little longer."

"I think I'll manage." The tension in the room thickened. Carefully, as not to give anything away, Jackson eyed up the door. His chances of getting out soon seemed unlikely. In his pocket he could feel the weight of his concealed communications device wearing him down. He had a feeling he'd be needing it soon.

"Ah, but I think I need something in return," Ginger clasped his hands together. "I do you a favour, I can only expect one in return."

"Of course." Jackson knew his luck had expired – whatever Ginger wanted him to do would not be pretty.

"I need you to kill a man."

 **The Horses Arms**

In the sleazy bar across the street, Zelda Lopez nursed the hazardous concoction the bartender had slipped in front of her. For the entire time she had been stationed there, she had casually kept one eye on the crumbling building her boss was currently in. She was sure Jackson would be fine. If not, well, that's what she was there for.

And for babysitting the preacher she had come along with.

Shepherd Hunter had been shoveling down intoxicant after intoxicant, regardless of the price. His thin lips were foaming from the preposterous amount of alcohol he had been consuming. Zelda had witnessed drinking games between some of the fiercest mercenaries in the Verse and even she was impressed by the Shepherd . Many of the bar's patrons were eyeing him up, dumbfounded by the contrast between his drink and his role. Zelda wasn't particularly bothered. She was there to keep an eye on the Captain and, if the need arose, stop the Shepherd from getting into trouble. For now he was just enjoying himself.

"Barkeep," he cried to the slender waitress who had been avoiding him for the past hour. "Pour me another two of your finest ale and then let me tell you a story."

"There's no need for the story," she said, begging. "But I'll get you the drinks."

"Oh no, I insist," slurred the Shepherd . "And then maybe afterwards…"

"That's enough Shepherd," interrupted Zelda, sensing trouble on the horizon. "She doesn't want to hear your stories." She looked up at the waitress. "He doesn't know what he's saying sometimes. It's the drink."

On any other occasion Zelda would have been up for watching the Shepherd getting slapped around, followed by maybe a full on bar fight. But she just knew that if she did she would never hear the end of it from Captain Jackson.

"What did you do that for?" slobbered the Shepherd. "She's been giving me the eye since we got here."

"And if you'd carried on, she would have gave you the fist too," retorted Zelda. "Hey, how does this sound to you? The longer you stay quiet, the more beer I buy you?"

The Shepherd thought for a moment then shot her a lopsided smile. "I think you have yourself a deal!" he grinned, knocking back another beverage.

Zelda lifted her beer. "Here's hoping the boss is doing a bit better in there."

 **Ginger's Palace**

"I'm sorry, what?" Jackson had to stop his chin from hitting the floor. "Listen, my friend, I know I owe you one but I'm asking for spare parts. You can't ask me to commit murder to pay you back."

"Of course," Ginger slipped back in his chair, resting his hands upon his swollen stomach. "I knew as soon as you came swaggering in here, you Central Planets Kids are too square to get your hands dirty when needs be."

Ginger's henchman edged closer and with good reason. Jackson expected a fight anytime soon. God, he hoped that Zelda had remained sober.

"If I was to accept this ludicrous proposal," said Jackson. "Who exactly would have the target on their back?"

Ginger delved into his suit's inner pocket and removed a wad of poorly rendered photographs before scattering them all over the table. Each one depicted the same bespeckled, white haired young man. In every photo he was attempting to hide his face, to no avail. What unnerved Jackson was the fear of god that was present in his eyes. In every photo.

"You want me to murder a child?"

"Oh, please Kane," sneered Ginger. "Spare me the saint act. He's only ten years younger than yourself. You want to get off this planet. I can get you off this planet. I want this man dead. You can kill him. The pieces all fit quite nicely together."

"Who is he and what exactly did he do?" Jackson had to stop himself for a moment. Was he actually considering Ginger's proposal?

"Pietro Hale," Ginger spat out the words. "This rat told the Alliance about some of my more delicate operations. Got a lot of my men killed. I was thinking maybe you could help some of their families sleep better tonight."

Jackson gingerly stood up, careful not to alarm the guards – of which the number of them had grown. Subtly, he pressed a button on the device in his pocket.

"I'm okay," he said. "I'll find the parts elsewhere."

The guards whipped out their pistols and aimed – some of them in plain sight, others lurking in the shadows. Ginger eased himself onto his feet and smiled.

"I'm afraid it's no longer an option, Captain Kane," he sneered.

" **熊貓尿** **"** Jackson sighed as he eased his hands above his head. "Well, I did expect this to go better."

"You think?" said Ginger.

"But it's okay because I have friends. Friends who are going to help me…now!" Jackson whipped his head around to the door. The empty door.

"Well?" Ginger shrugged his shoulders.

"Sorry, that was for effect. I mean now!" Still nothing.

"This really isn't going well for you, is it?"

Jackson sighed. "You see I had this whole thing planned where I press a button on this device when I got into trouble." Jackson held up the device – a crooked, second-hand pile of nuts and bolts. "I sat on it. I actually went and sat on my getaway ticket." He sighed. "Well, you know, I don't think they got the signal."

"Really?" Ginger raised an abnormally hairy eyebrow. "Captain Kane, I think we should talk more about the man you're going to kill."


	2. Chapter 2

**Icarus**

Jade was bored. Really, really bored.

Peace and quiet every now and again was good for the soul. Jade knew that. She had started off her day on _Icarus_ with a therapeutic exercise routine - one she had studied on a core planet. Afterwards she had clambered up onto the roof and took in the captivating sights of the bustling city. But now she was bored; after all, there was only so much relaxing a person could do.

In a dream-like state, Jade wandered through the empty corridors of _Icarus_ , feeling the constant low hum vibrating throughout her body. Every step echoed, an annoying clanking sound. Yet every irritation reassured her that she was home.

"Arrrgh!" a piercing cry shot through the hallways, shocking Jade back into reality.

"I'm coming!" she exclaimed, darting towards the source.

She burst into the loading bay where a dancing inferno had consumed an assortment of equipment on the floor. To the side of it stood a white-haired man in an obnoxiously flamboyant scarlet lab coat, crying out in undecipherable nonsense. Without hesitation, Jade sprang into action. She grabbed a nearby supply bucket filled with water and poured every last drop onto the growing flame.

"Oh, thank the heavens," Jade gave a sigh of relief. "You almost burned out half the ship, Doc."

When she got no reply, Jade turned around to see Doctor Kranz leaning over the remnants of his tech, his face was contorted in simultaneous anger, pain and insanity.

"Do you have any idea what your meddlesome interference has done, young girl?" he barked. "A thermos reaction could have finished my beautiful little creation. Oh well, it's not a big deal. It's just that thanks to you my work has been set back two months!" He jumped up, a deranged spark in his bulging eye.

"You could have warned me," Jade put her arms up defensively. "You've been quiet on the ship all day. At any point did you think to mention that you'd be setting one of our rooms on fire? What you even doing that on the ship for?"

"What?" he began pacing furiously. "Do it outside and draw attention to ourselves. Last I heard, you and the Captain wanted to keep a low profile. I doubt setting a fire on this criminal cesspit of a planet would have let us escape unnoticed. I have a few more good years in me before lawbreakers tear me apart."

Jade gave a deep sigh, struggling to remain optimistically kind. "I just meant that it would perhaps be better to not do this experiment at all."

Kranz glared at her.

"Or not," Jade turned back around. "How about next time you just conduct your experiments in a safer environment?"

She went to scurry away, not waiting for his snide retort. The Doctor was an asset on the ship that Jade was beginning to get a little worried about.

"I told you to wait around!" snapped a familiar voice, stopping Jade in her tracks. "So that, in the case that I got attacked, you would be able to get me out of it."

Captain Kane had come stumbling onto the vessel, fresh bruises marking his wincing face. Stumbling behind him was Zelda who was, to no avail, attempting to drag the intoxicated Shepherd behind her. Both of their clothes had been animalisticly torn to shreds.

"The Shepherd annoyed quite a lot of people," shouted Zelda. "He was lucky I managed to get him out of their alive. He could have died. You, however, could have handled yourself."

"They all had guns pointing at me!" he retorted. "A lot of them. They were threatening me – but as long as you got out of one of your pub brawls unscathed, that's okay."

Zelda edged herself towards him, dropping the Shepherd on the floor. "Unscathed?" She indicated towards her clothes. "I went through some stuff to keep one of your crew alive – I didn't have to. So you talk to me like that again..."

"That's enough of that," Jade edged herself in between the two of them. "At least everyone's safe and home. I think we should more worried about the Shepherd; you really should stop him from drinking so much. Kranz, go get him a drink of water."

"Remind me again - when did i become your slave?"

"Do it." Jade eyed up Kranz. He met her stare for a moment, then sighed. He regretfully shuffled away, cursing antagonistically. "Jack, what happened out there? Did we get the parts? Tell me using the least aggressive language possible."

Jackson guiltily looked down at his feet. "We made a deal."

"Uh-oh."

"Uh-oh?"

"You've got that 'I've had a bad decision face'. I don't like it."

"Well, Ginger will give us the parts if…" The rest of the sentence was muffled.

"What was that?"

Again, the response was indecipherable.

"Just tell me, Jack!"

"He wants us to kill a guy."

Silence echoed throughout the room.

"Yeah, I'm up for that," grinned Zelda, a little too enthusiastically.

"No, none of us are up for that!" Jade shouted, unable to hold back her rage. "Tell me you're not considering it."

"Well…" began Jackson.

"Nope, nope, we're not dealing with this," stammered Jade. "We don't do stuff like this."

"Okay, I see where you're coming from," Jackson replied, lowering his voice in an attempt to calm his friend down. "But we're stuck and Ginger's the only one who will give us what we need. What he wants us to do is wrong but it is the only option we have. It's the lesser of two evils – you understand that."

Jade turned around, facing the wall. "We don't kill. We survive and we let others survive. Remember that, Jack."

She scampered away, refusing to look back at her companions. If she had, she would have seen the remorseful looks etched into their faces.


	3. Chapter 3

**Icarus**

" **笨天生的一堆肉** " spat Jackson, slamming his fist on the table. "I think we might be in trouble."

Kranz emphatically sniggered. "What was your first clue? The broken escape route, the gangs out for blood or your little sidekick walking out on the plan."

It was times like this that Jackson truly regretted allowing the fanatical doctor on his ship. The problem with being on the run is that very few people are willing to join you; those who are can be a little unpredictable.

"Jade isn't my 'sidekick'," said Jackson. "And we are perfectly capable of surviving without her. I've got you and Zelda."

Kranz took a long swig from the heavily diluted ale he had smuggled on-board. "If you think you have a chance of getting me to help out, you have another thing coming," he finally said. "At least you have Zelda – I've heard mercenaries are notoriously loyal."

On cue, Zelda swaggered in, carting in an assortment of weaponry. She loaded onto the table every hazardous object hidden throughout the ship, from powdered pistols to slender knives. Jackson stared at the heap in amazement.

"When did we get that many guns?" he said raising an eyebrow.

"I collect 'em," she grinned, rather unnervingly.

"I'm starting to like her," Kranz raised his glass in appreciation. "So what's the plan, Captain?"

"I thought you weren't getting involved, Doctor?" Jackson said.

"Touché," he said. "It's just, the sooner we get off this godforsaken planet, the better. Oh, and if you want to leave your lackey behind, that would make my day."

"Yes, I've heard you and Jade aren't getting along. Setting fire to the ship does make some people annoyed. I just want you to know something," Jackson edged towards the doctor. "She stays before you do. Understand?"

"Without me you can't get this heap of junk off the ground," Kranz's haughty attitude had disappeared, replaced with something far more menacing. "You will do well to remember that, _Captain_."

Jackson's veins bulged, pure anger coursing through his body. For once, the deranged megalomaniac in front of him was right – without him, they had no chance of escaping anyone. It was in this moment it dawned on him that he pined for Jade's hopeful words more than usual.

"Okay, all we have to do to solve all of your problems is to kill this guy, Pietro," explained Jackson calmly.

"Don't give him a name," said Zelda. "Thinking of people as people makes it harder to kill them."

"I take it you didn't know my name then," said Jackson. "When you came after me."

She didn't answer.

"As much as I love awkward silence, I do have a question," said Kranz. "Do you have any idea where this young felon is? It would make your murder a whole lot easier."

"Ginger has a location," said Jackson. "A bar, not too far from here. Quite a seedy establishment, apparently."

"Great, another bar," sneered Zelda. "Sounds like another great outing for me and the Shepherd."

"No, no," Jackson paced the length of the dining room, his eyes glazed over calculatingly. "He's too much of a loose cannon. Zelda, you'll meet the target in the bar where you will…win him over."

"If you think that's happening…"

"Doc, you'll be my eyes in the sky," Jackson interjected. "The minute Zelda leads our guy out of the bar, you'll let me know. I hope that won't prove too difficult for you."

"I suppose I'm in. But only to get out of the hellhole," decided the doctor, reluctantly. "And you? Going to stay on the ship, keep your hands clean?"

The Captain hesitated, ever so slightly. How could he be sure he was doing the right thing? Despite her naive optimism, Jade had often been correct in the past. Was it really worth winning if they lost themselves in the process?

"I'll be waiting outside," he exhaled. "To finish the job."


	4. Chapter 4

**White Rabbit**

Zelda hated her dress. The excessively tight pants, the pointless decorative frills and the overly-expensive neckless that strangled her neck. All of it gave the qa of an idiotic girl out for the night, armed with alcohol and poor life decisions. However much Zelda detested this image, it was all for a good cause.

Pietro Hale; a man who had chosen to spend his time on the run in one of the most popular bars on Legion. A mop of stark white hair obscured his bony face but he was still indistinguishable from the man in the photographs. The fugitive sat there, in plain sight, nursing the beverage before him. Zelda had to admire that; the man was clearly staying sober in case one of Ginger's men found him. However, she sincerely doubted that he would expect his hunter to come a scantily dressed as she was.

Gracefully she eased up beside him, flashing him a flirtatious smile. His knees visibly weakened, and Zelda resisted the urge to sneer.

"Hello, handsome," she said through pursed lips. "Fancy talking to a lonely gir?"

"Heh," he smirked. "Take a seat."

Zelda eased herself onto the seat beside him.

"Bartender, I'll have another drink please," he called. "Red Russian. For the lady." He turned back to Zelda. "So what's a pretty girl like you doing in a place like this?"

"Oh, I've just lost my friends," stammered Zelda, adapting a ditzy persona. "I thought if I stay in one place, they might find me."

"At least you´ve got me to keep you company," grinned Pietro.

"Yeah, great…" grimaced Zelda, unnoticeably.

In her peripheral, Zelda noticed a hunched, white haired man enter the bar. Kranz. He stumbled over to a crowded corner of the bar, blending in with the bumbling buffoons around him.

"So why are you in town?" she inquired. "Am I right in saying you aren't from around here?"

"You would be," he said. "Just a little stop off, onto bigger things. Hopefully."

"Isn't that the dream for everyone?" said Zelda.

"Heh," he chuckled. "Fair point. But, no, I have a plan. I might even head to one of the central planets after this – I've heard Ariel's nice this time of year."

"You sound confident," inferred Zelda; she'd found something filling her with confidence. "What you planning on doing?"

"Oh, that would be telling," Pietro said. "I wouldn't want your friends to hear."

"I'm sorry, wha…" The confidence plummeted.

"Oh don't play the fool," smiled Pietro, a solemn smile. "That old man in the corner has been eying us up since this conversation started and I sincerely doubt it's for that dress. There is also a man lingering in the doorway – I presume that's my killer. Or you could be? I wouldn't put it past you to get your hands dirty. Whatever's happening, I'm probably going to die."

His certainty made Zelda hesitate for a moment before speaking. She had never met a man so content before death.

"You're smart."

"And you're ruthless. Do you often seduce a man before killing him?"

"We just want to talk."

"Armed, mysterious people never tend to have a habit of talking."

"Fair point. I wasn't going to open with a death threat though, was I?"

"Most girls take me out for dinner first."

"For a man about to die, you do look comfortable."

Pietro grinned, yet he could not remove the scared look in his eye.

"Red Russian. What I asked the barkeep for. It's a code me and him have."

As he spoke, Zelda felt a gun being pressed against her skull. It seemed that the barman was a friend of her target. In the corner, Kranz had become surrounded by his apparent peers. Jackson's shadow receded from the doorway.

"When you're on the run, a surprising amount of like-minded people are willing to help you out." Pietro sat back in his chair.

" **笨天生的一堆肉** **"** she spat, reluctantly raising her hands above her head.


End file.
